On a little known website an advert popped up recently that didn’t catch the eye of many people. Those that did see it realised the implications of it when they read the details. The website is called Supply2Health and is the location for all outsourced tenders for services in the English NHS. It is a […]
Category: NHS
Chris Hopson: Planning to meet the District General Hospital challenge
A recent visit to a district general hospital (DGH) over the Christmas period gave a perfect illustration of the scale of immediate challenge that many acute trusts face over the next few years; challenges that were raised by both Chris Ham and Dr John Oldham in their November 2013 BMJ analyses on money and reform […]
Vijaya Nath: Medical revalidation: trauma, trivia, triumph
The United Kingdom is the first country in the world to introduce the mandatory revalidation of its medical workforce. How does this process feel for those engaged in it? The King’s Fund have been exploring this question with doctors on development programmes, in masterclass events, and in a recent qualitative study and have found some […]
Phil Koczan: Time to regain trust in care.data
Over the past few weeks we have seen a lot of media interest around NHS England’s plan to bring health information together under the banner of care.data, which will allow the linkage of de-identified patient data from different care settings in a secure environment. Care.data will have various uses which include measuring and improving the […]
Kiran Varadharajan: A junior surgical trainee’s perspective on surgical simulation
The European Working Time Directive (EWTD) has reduced the number of hours that trainee doctors have to hone their skills. As a junior surgical trainee, I find that time in theatre is of the essence when it comes to improving my operative skills. “The Time for Training Report” highlighted these challenges with suggestions on how […]
Richard Vize: Labour’s recommendations on integrated care and social reform
Labour’s independent commission on health policy has made some welcome recommendations on integrated care and system reform, but could create conflict between the NHS and local government. The commission, led by respected GP Sir John Oldham, develops the idea of “whole person care” championed by shadow health secretary Andy Burnham, intended to bring together physical […]
Billy Boland: The importance of challenging the status quo
I had 10 minutes to steel myself as I marched down the Embankment in Leeds for the second residential of the Bevan Programme at the NHS Leadership Academy. Preparing to be the odd man out, I was going to gate crash a different cohort for this next three day stretch. I’d missed out on my […]
Helen Steiner: Do GP trainers have enough protected time for training?
As a recently qualified GP trainer I have been aware of an “elephant in the room” regarding protected time for training. I have not been able to find any written advice regarding how much time a practice should make available to the trainer for supervision of surgeries; informal teaching, tutorial preparation, e-portfolio review, trainers’ group […]
Kailash Chand: Statins
New draft guidance issued by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) for public consultation recommends that the threshold for starting treatment to prevent cardiovascular disease should be halved from a 20% risk of developing cardiovascular disease over 10 years to a 10% risk. The guideline is being updated to allow for a consideration […]
Martin Carroll: Thinking of working in the NHS?
In 2013, the National Health Service (NHS) celebrated 65 years of providing comprehensive healthcare, free at the point of delivery to UK citizens. There are a number of factors contributing to the success and longevity of the NHS, including the dedication of its workforce. The role of doctors and nurses from overseas should not be […]